In this May 27, 2017, photo provided by the Presidential Communications Operations Office, President Rodrigo Duterte, third right, talks to soldiers during his visit to Jolo, Sulu. AP
Majority of Filipino adults agreed with President Rodrigo Duterte in putting the whole of Mindanao under martial law, results of a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey released Tuesday show.
In the nationwide survey conducted among 1,200 adults, 57 percent said Duterte was “right” in putting the whole of the South under martial rule.
On the other hand, 29 percent said the president should have limited martial law to Marawi City and Lanao Del Sur, while 11 percent said that apart from Marawi and Lanao Del Sur other nearby provinces could have been included.
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The conduct of the survey from June 23 to 26 marked the first month that Mindanao was placed under martial law. At that time, talks of extending it also surfaced.
In the same survey, respondents in general were found neutral on the effect of martial law on the nation’s economy.
Some 43 percent said that the state of economy would be the same after the martial law declaration.
Another 33 percent expected it would be worse, while 24 percent expected the economy to get better. The results showed a net -9 national balance of opinion, which is on the “lower borderline” of what the SWS classify as “neutral.”
In the Visayas, 24 percent were optimistic of the country’s economy, while 37 percent expected the worse, for a “moderately unfavorable” net rating of -13. The rest (40 percent) said it would be the same.
For the National Capital Region, the balance of opinion is net -7 (23 percent better and 29 percent worse), which is “neutral,” SWS added.
Opinions from Luzon and the Visayas garnered a “moderately unfavorable” net balance of opinion of -14.
In Mindanao, on the other hand, the balance of opinion is zero, or exactly neutral, with both those saying the economy getting better or getting worse at 27 percent. A total of 45 percent said no change would happen.
The second quarter survey was conducted using face-to-face interviews of adults nationwide, 300 each coming from Metro Manila, Balance of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
“Sampling error margins of ±3% for national percentages, ±6% each for Metro Manila, Balance of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. CBB